The MAGA coalition is 'fraying' — both inside and outside the White House: WaPo

President Donald Trump with members of his Cabinet, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum in 2025 (image from White House galleries)

President Donald Trump became famous for the catchphrase “you’re fired.” However, in his second term, he has used that power against career federal workers, but he has largely kept the tight inner-circle staff he brought in with him in January, The Washington Post reported in the Monday morning newsletter.

It comes as key members of his fanbase are starting to break, The Post added.

“In recent weeks, pockets of the president’s base — well-known for its unwavering dedication to Trump and his MAGA agenda — have accused the president of focusing too much on foreign affairs, failing to address the cost of living issues he pledged to fix, aligning himself too closely with billionaires and tech moguls, and resisting the release of more investigative files on the deceased sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein," wrote Natalie Allison, Kadia Goba and Hannah Knowles for The Post about the so-called faction of Nicki Minaj.

A group of her fan base has pulled their support of Minaj, referring to themselves as “Edgy Barbz” due to their critical perspectives on the rapper's behavior.

“It’s okay to admit that someone you wish the best for has screwed up. Not all their RIGHTS from the past make up for the current blatant wrongs,” the Post shared from a Reddit user. “ … To go from referencing your own journey as an immigrant to the things I’m seeing? And the people she’s aligning herself with?”

The Minaj alliance adds to the possible breakup of Trump's White House coalition. The ousting of staff and officials “felt constant eight years ago,” the report noted, with Trump sacking people on social media while "warring West Wing factions pushed out senior staff. A 2021 Brookings Institution study found that Trump had the highest staff turnover of any modern president, setting records in just his first year."

In this term, Trump's Cabinet officials have faced multiple scandals, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, FBI Director Kash Patel and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.

MSNOW reported that Noem is on "thin ice" in her post and sources said that Trump anticipates replacing her in 2026.

Hegseth has faced scandal after scandal over allegedly sharing classified information via Signal with a reporter and family members. He is also under fire due to his bombing campaign against boats in the Caribbean that the administration claims are carrying drugs into the U.S. The New York Times reported that these missteps being broadcast to the world have made Hegseth increasingly paranoid.

Patel has angered both parties with his handling of key investigations and has been embroiled in personal controversies, including using taxpayer funds to fly the FBI's Gulfstream jet for trips to see his girlfriend, lavish vacations and events in Texas and Nashville.

Gabbard drew criticism earlier this year after she claimed in a video that the world is “on the brink of nuclear annihilation.”

Unlike the first term, the Post reported, Trump has surrounded himself with loyalists rather than top Republican Party recommendations in the first term.

Another reason for Trump's lack of firings, the Post claimed, is that he can't admit when he's wrong.

John Bolton, Trump’s former national security adviser, explained that Trump “doesn’t want the second term defined” by the palace intrigue and chaos evident in the first term.

“If you’ve hired a bunch of people and then you have to fire them, it admits you made a mistake. And as we all know, Donald Trump doesn’t make mistakes," Bolton said, sarcastically.

The Post report also noted that most of Trump's Cabinet firings didn't begin until his second year in office.

Read the report here.

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